Challenges of Interpersonal Communication Within the Japanese Culture
Challenges of Interpersonal Communication within the Japanese Culture
One way of defining interpersonal communication is to compare it to other forms of communication. In so doing, one would examine how many people are involved, how physically close they are to one another, how many sensory channels are used, and the feedback provided. Interpersonal communication differs from other forms of communication in that there are few participants involved, the people who interact are in close physical proximity to each other, there are many sensory channels used, and feedback is immediate. An important point to note about the contextual definition is that it does not take into account the relationship between the people who are interacting with each other (Borchers, 1999).
An understanding of interpersonal communication is an essential element when attempting to form good relationships. Interpersonal communication lies at the junction of our cultural understanding. Consequently, each of these components influences one another in more ways we can imagine. Language is perhaps the most pertinent tool in communications, we may infer to the semantics of each dictionary in the language to understand language as a component on its own. But this is neither the only nor the foremost element of importance in communication due to the complex process by which culture and communication influence each other. Certain cultural etiquettes can regulate the appropriate expression for the language. Real life observations of people who get in trouble for not following the appropriate etiquettes can indicate how something is said and may weigh more importance than what is being said (Herrington, n.d.).
Before someone can begin understand a person or his culture, what their daily lives are like must be established, for example their traditions, beliefs even the way they view the world through their eyes. Cultures with high uncertainty avoidance try to minimize uncertainty through strict laws
One way of defining interpersonal communication is to compare it to other forms of communication. In so doing, one would examine how many people are involved, how physically close they are to one another, how many sensory channels are used, and the feedback provided. Interpersonal communication differs from other forms of communication in that there are few participants involved, the people who interact are in close physical proximity to each other, there are many sensory channels used, and feedback is immediate. An important point to note about the contextual definition is that it does not take into account the relationship between the people who are interacting with each other (Borchers, 1999).
An understanding of interpersonal communication is an essential element when attempting to form good relationships. Interpersonal communication lies at the junction of our cultural understanding. Consequently, each of these components influences one another in more ways we can imagine. Language is perhaps the most pertinent tool in communications, we may infer to the semantics of each dictionary in the language to understand language as a component on its own. But this is neither the only nor the foremost element of importance in communication due to the complex process by which culture and communication influence each other. Certain cultural etiquettes can regulate the appropriate expression for the language. Real life observations of people who get in trouble for not following the appropriate etiquettes can indicate how something is said and may weigh more importance than what is being said (Herrington, n.d.).
Before someone can begin understand a person or his culture, what their daily lives are like must be established, for example their traditions, beliefs even the way they view the world through their eyes. Cultures with high uncertainty avoidance try to minimize uncertainty through strict laws
References: Borchers, T. (1999). Communication Studies. Allyn & Bacon. Retrieved from http://www.abacon.com/commstudies/interpersonal/indefinition.html ClearlyCultural. (2009). Making sense of cross cultural communication. Retrieved from http://www.clearlycultural.com/ Collectivism vs. Individualism (2009). Retrieved October 25, 2009 from http://internationalbusiness.wikia.com/wiki/Collectivism_vs._Individualism De Mente, B.L. (2009). Why the Japanese are a superior people. Phoenix, AZ: Phoenix Books. Lacy & Nyman. (2002). Doing business in Japan. Retrieved from http://www.rikkinyman.com/training/japanese_culture/communication.htm Masculinity in Japan (2008). Retrieved October 25, 2009 from http://internationalbusiness.wikia.com/wiki/Masculinity_in_Japan West, R. and Turner, L. (2006). Understanding interpersonal communication. Belmont, Ca: Thomson-Wadsworth.